Sunday, November 22, 2009

Deadly Viper deadly to Chinese Culture?

President and CEO Moe Gerkins says the book's contents, which used Chinese characters and illustrations, 'are offensive to many people despite its otherwise solid message.'


by Sarah Pulliam Bailey

Zondervan President and CEO Moe Gerkins apologized on behalf of the company for publishing Deadly Viper: A Kung Fu Survival Guide for Life and Leadership, a book that uses Chinese characters and images for illustrations.

deadly_viper.jpg

Gerkins said the company will remove the book and curriculum from stores permanently, according to an email to North Park Theological Seminary professor Soong-Chan Rah.

Rah called for an apology on November 3 on his blog because of what he perceived as insensitivity to Asian culture and to the Asian-American community.

Deadly Viper authors Mike Foster and Jud Wilhite have removed materials from their website, but their Facebook fan page is still up and Zondervan still has two chapters of the book on its website.

Several bloggers had weighed in on the issue, and several are now praising Zondervan's decision.

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My comment: "huh?"

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